It was a typical Saturday in the virtual world of Remnant, her beautiful creation came to life through years of hard work. The Halloween event was going well, the decorations are loved by the players and they enjoyed the new quests and costumes. However, The girl's creation still had a relatively small player base compared to conventional MMOs and also still lacked any kind of publicity outside of the game's praise for it's unique technological breakthroughs. However, the creator of the game has a plan, and she just needed to find the one person she wanted to help her. The only problem is that she hasn't met the person in a little over 2 years.

"Penny...I don't think you're going to find who you're looking for by walking through the streets." The feminine voice chided in her head, well, not really in her head but it might as well have been.

"But Ciel, how else am I supposed to find her?" Penny walked among the players, none of them even remotely aware that the creator of the very game they were in was walking among them.

"Well, if you didn't lose the note that had her address on it, you could have just visited her home instead..."

"Hey, you try keeping track of a tiny little note that I made on shredded paper found in a hospital two years ago." Penny really should have made Ciel make a digital copy of it the moment she got back from her doctor's appointment back then, she would have at least liked to see if that little girl even accepted her gift to begin with. While Penny was reminiscing about her old, maybe, kind of, sort of friend while Ciel was chasticing her for her lack of organizational skills. It wasn't her fault, really. Penny's always had difficulty keeping things organized, among other things of course.

As Penny was deep in thought, ignoring Ciel's ranting, and not watching where she was going, a door suddenly swung open and knocked her off her feet and sent her landing onto the cobblestone road in a heap. It took her a few seconds to notice that the people that had just opened the door completely ignored her and walked on by. However, the conversation they were having caught her complete attention, drowning out anything CIel was saying in the process.

"Those losers are so going down." The only male of the trio said

"Calm down, Talaria. It's not like it's anything worth getting excited over." a green haired mage deadpanned.

"Hey, you may not care much about PVP, but I on the other hand love it."

"I just hope Cinder doesn't get wind of this…"

Driven by curiosity, Penny looked towards the building the rude players had just left and looked through the window. What she saw was a group of players, a red headed girl that looked both angry and worried all at once, a blue haired mage and a purple haired rogue that looked confused, a tall blonde paladin and pinked haired warrior that looked like they were explaining something to the fuming red head, and last but not least, A female warrior with black hair with red highlights who looked an awful lot like…

"I found her! Ciel, I found her!" Penny squealed in delight.

"What!? Are you sure it's her?"

"Of course! I have a photographic memory, remember? And the helmet scans your facial structure to make as close of a replica of the player's face as possible, it may not be an exact and perfect copy but I am eighty five percent sure that this girl is definitely her!"

"Alright, now all you have to do is-"

"No...No no no no!" Penny couldn't believe what she was seeing. The group of players, including the one person she was looking for, used a quick travel stone thanks to the blue haired mage. After finally finding the girl, she was back to square one. Unless…

"Ciel, I want you to go through the server's data and find out where exactly those players just teleported to."

"Penny, that would take too long, they'll probably be long gone by the time I-"

"Ciel, do you want that raise and promotion I promised you, or are you satisfied with being my personal secretary for another unknown amount of years?"

There was a few seconds of silence from Ciel's end before Penny finally heard an overly annoyed groan. "Fine...I'll get on it right away."

"Thanks Ciel, you're such a great friend!"

"Last I checked, friends don't blackmail other friends with their career goals…"

"I cannot believe those three actually challenged Crimson Fall to a fight. Again." Pyrrha crossed her arms, glaring at the soon-to-be battlefield below her. She, Weiss, Blake, and Ren were standing on a small cliffside that acted as a place for spectators to watch the match.

"I can't believe our guild is called Resourceful Raiders..." Weiss muttered. "Sounds Barbaric."

"We put it to a vote, Resourceful Raiders won." Pyrrha stated.

"When?!"

Pyrrha smiled sheepishly as she began to play with her ponytail. "...a couple of months before you joined."

Weiss crossed her arms, puffing out her cheeks as she fumed. Of course they voted on it before she joined. Next thing she knows, it was Crescent's idea."How can you vote on a guild name without even having a guild."

"Crescent was bored one day, it was her idea."

"Of course it was…" Weiss couldn't believe her luck.

"I can't believe you two are arguing over the guild name when you should be worried about your friends down there." Blake chimed in as she read through the game's lore for their current location via the holographic menu panel. "Judging by how Pyrrha freaked out-"

"I didn't freak out."

"Right, as I was saying, judging by how Pyrrha freaked out, I would assume that these Crimson Fall guys aren't exactly pushovers?"

Pyrrha sighed solemnly. "Yes. Though the last time we had a fight like this, it was Crescent and Jaune against Morgiana and Talaria. Crescent and Jaune were both pretty new to the game, unlike the rest of us at the time who had been playing since the game's launch. It took them a while to get used to the game's physics, and at the time of their fight with Crimson Fall, they were both still trying to figure out their playstyle, especially Crescent."

"Wait a minute, physics? You mean that things work differently in the game compared to real life?" Blake asked.

"Sort of, haven't noticed that you can jump slightly higher than normal?" Ren joined in, leaning against a nearby tree next to Blake. "In fact, I'd advise you to focus on agility since you're a rogue like me."

"I guess that makes sense."

As Blake, Ren, and Pyrrha chatted, Weiss was busy being worried about the outcome of the match. There wasn't anything she could do about it though as she wasn't chosen for the 3v3 match. She looked down at the field below her. A river cutting the land in half while also splitting the two teams and their bases. On the left of Weiss was Crescent, Jaune, and Boop's base that sat atop a hill with a cliffside towering over it. That castle being the place the battlefield was named after, Fort Castle. Weiss wondered what idiot thought that name was good for a fantasy setting. It was honestly lazy, if not comical. Then again, maybe that was the point. Across from Fort Castle and on the other side of the river, was a much darker, crude looking structure that resembled that of an old gothic church, made with dark bricks that practically screamed "Look here! I'm evil!".

"So...this is all quite well designed and detailed for something as simple as capture-the-flag." Weiss stated, admiring how natural the landscaped looked despite the obvious 'boxed canyon' design the battlefield had. She could tell that whoever did the modeling and planning for the map had certainly put a lot of effort and passion into it.

"Apparently it's supposed to be a historical battle in the world's history." Blake said as she swiped the page on her interface panel, still reading the game's lore as they all waited for the match to start.

"I just hope they don't make fools of themselves. Again…" Pyrrha muttered to herself.

Weiss glanced over at Fort Castle where Crescent, Jaune, and Boop were inside. No doubt planning their strategy. "Do you really think they can't win?"

"I never said that. Don't get me wrong, since their last little fight, Crescent and Jaune have definitely improved but they still lack a lot of experience in PVP combat. However, I think Crimson Fall is going to be surprised when they see exactly how Crescent has improved." The smirk on Pyrrha's face was a bit surprising from Weiss' point of view.

"What do you mean?"

"You'll see."

"See what exactly?" A sudden and unknown voice joined in, prompting the group to look behind them. Everyone but Weiss and Blake looked at the unwelcome guest with hate in their eyes. A player with bright orange hair that covered one of his eyes stood before them, wearing an expensive and wealthy looking black and orange mage's robe. He looked to actually be an adult if his facial features were anything to go by, maybe in his late twenties to early thirties. What caught Weiss' attention the most however was his gentleman like demeanor, complete with an expression that almost looked playful if it wasn't for the menacing grin he wore.

"Caesar, what are you doing here?" Pyrrha spat, glaring at the older man.

"What? Can't a high ranking member of Crimson Fall watch his little ones play with the other kids?" The man known as Caesar twirled a small staff around in his hand, atop it was a glowing orange gem that burned a fiery trail in the air.

Pyrrha gritted her teeth, clearly not liking the fact that Caesar had a fair point. "Fine...just behave yourself."

Caesar walked over to a tree a couple feet away from the group, and seemed to be content with minding his own business. However, just as everyone could finally relax, another player showed up, spawning into the area between Caesar and the group. This time though, the player was a girl with bright green hair and wore a green and black witch's costume. The girl stared at Weiss and her friends for a moment, almost as if she was searching for someone, and then frowned.

"Damn it, she's not here…" the girl muttered. Weiss, as well as the rest of her friends, simply stared at the girl in utter confusion. However, before anyone could ask who she was, she eagerly walked up to Weiss and her friends. "Excuse me, where did your friend go? The one with the giant sword and short black hair with red highlights."

"What do you want with Crescent?" Pyrrha asked, a little uneasy by the girl's sudden appearance.

"I must talk to her, I am eighty five percent sure that she is the girl I am looking for." The girl chirped with a confident and determined nod. Weiss found the girl odd, to say the least. There was just something off about the way she seemed so chipper and confident. Maybe it was the pure randomness of the girl's sudden appearance and that she knows Crescent while everyone else seemed just as confused as Weiss was.

Weiss stepped forward, immediately grabbing the unknown girl's attention. "Um...I'm sorry, but she is kind of about to have a PVP match. What exactly do you need to talk to her about?"

"Oh, that's classified. But if you must know, I'm an old friend of hers...and I have something really important that I must speak to her about." For a second, the girl looked unsure when she claimed to be Crescent's friend and Weiss questioned whether this girl was really telling the truth or not. She didn't like this one bit, something was clearly suspicious about this girl.

"Well…" Pyrrha chimed in with a smile. "You can watch the match with us while waiting for her, if you want to."

The girl's eyes widened as she suddenly had a huge and excited smile. "Really!? I can watch with you?"

"I don't see why not." Pyrrha gave her a shrug. "So, what's your name?"

"Oh, you can call me Pen-, erm, Penelope. Yeah, Penelope" The girl gave an awkward smile, one that only fueled Weiss' suspicions.

Ruby tugged at the hem of her skirt. After about an hour of wearing this stupid Red Riding Hood costume, she still hadn't gotten to used to wearing it. She knows that her scars don't show up on her in-game character model but she couldn't help it. It was a subconscious effort on her part as the only person who has actually seen her scars was her sister, Yang, and maybe her father? She honestly wasn't sure if he had seen them since her father most likely would have seen them when she was still unconscious in the hospital. After she woke up, she had apparently already gone through surgery and her father wasn't allowed to be in the room whenever her bandages needed changing due to privacy issues. So as far as Ruby knew, her father had never seen her scars.

'No one can see them, you are in Beacons of Remnant, your scars literally don't exist here!'

"Alright, So while that's going on, Crescent should be able to swoop in and steal their flag." Jaune, making elaborate movements and gestures with his hands, finished talking about their plan and Ruby honestly wasn't exactly sure if half of Jaune's plan even made sense, she really should have been paying attention to Jaune instead of her damn scars...

"Right...So why are you, the only one in our guild who can heal, going to be guarding the flag...alone?" Boop asked, scratching her head with one hand while her other twirled her hammer effortlessly as if it were as light as a pencil.

"Because I have the best stamina out of the three of us, I can take more hits and keep them away from the flag."

"But what if they just sneak around you? Oh! Or better yet, what if they're just faster than you? I mean, they don't have to take you out to get the flag."

"Boop, I'm pretty sure I can defend the flag on my own. I mean, look at this place!" Jaune gestured to the room they were standing in. it was massive, mostly empty and had only two archways on either side of the castle itself as a way to enter and leave. The castle actually wasn't very big and only really consisted of one room with a large circle on the ground with their blue flag in the center. "There's no way they can sneak up on me, there's only two ways in or out."

Ruby sighed and placed a hand on Jaune's shoulder. "Yeah, but I could really use your healing abilities in the field, Jaune. As a Paladin, you're the only one in our guild who can heal, even if it isn't your specialty. So, I think Boop should guard the flag."

"But Boop is a much better fighter. Plus, you two fight really well together."

"Okay, okay, how about this." Boop stepped in. "You and Crescent fight for round one and if that doesn't end well, we'll switch out."

Ruby nodded, with Jaune only doing so reluctantly, before making their way out of the castle. Ruby gave Nora a thumbs up as she left the castle. "Alright, We'll head on out to the frontline. Go ahead and give the ready signal, Boop!"

"Good luck out there!" Boop gave them a sappy salute before walking over to a wall where a wooden lever was situated and she pulled it with much enthusiasm. The second the lever was pulled, a flair shot out from atop the castle, signalling the start of the first round.

Ruby and Jaune rushed down their hilltop towards the river, with Ruby taking the lead with her superior speed. On the opposite side of the river, Talaria and Morgiana were doing much the same as Talaria rushed straight towards Ruby, grinning like mad. With her two handed sword in her left hand, Ruby leaped across the entire river and swung her sword downward to crush Talaria. However, with a second to spare, talaria dodged by just an inch and countered with a swift kick that Ruby managed to doge by leaping back.

Ruby then began circling around to Talaria's flank before charging in again, this time swinging her sword across his torso, but Talaria just barely dodge, the tip of Ruby's massive blade cutting across his chest. Ruby smirked as Talaria did a flip backwards to give himself distance away from her.

"I'll admit, you got a lot better." Talaria said with a grin, however, his grin lessened when he saw the cocky smirk on Ruby's face. "What are you smiling for, huh?"

Ruby didn't answer and instead charged once again in a blink of an eye, this time doubling her speed and gripping her sword with both hands for a more stable grip as she swung repeatedly, each attack either missing by a fraction of an inch or just making small cuts across Talaria, each cut making Ruby's blade become tainted by blood. Talara was caught off guard by Ruby's sudden speed and the way she shot in and out of his field of view only added to his confusion. He dodged almost effortlessly, using his speed to dance around Ruby's massive blade that was almost a blur to his eyes. After about twenty seconds, Ruby pulled away and gave herself a good ten feet of distance between Talaria and herself.

Talaria stood there for a moment, surprised that the attacks stopped. "What the hell? You didn't even do anything!"

Ruby chuckled and gave her opponent a wicked smirk, resting her now completely red blade on her shoulder. "Check again, asshole."

Talara groaned and checked his health, his eyes widened when he saw it was slowly but surely dropping. He then saw a single "dot" below his health where status effects would be displayed. "Poison!?"

"Bleeding, actually." Ruby then charged one last time as Talaria was caught off guard by the information, swinging her sword through his torso and delivered a killing blow. She heard a few cheers from the cliffside where her friends were which made her smile in glee. She did a quick glance at Jaune who was struggling with Morgiana and her spells but was somehow managing to hold her off. With Talaria out of the picture for the rest of the round, Ruby charged the enemy base to steal the flag.

Weiss cheered with the rest of her friends. She was in awe by the sure speed of the fight between Crescent and Talaria, both nothing but dancing blurs from where she stood on the cliff. "How did she do that? I didn't know Crescent could put status effects on enemies like I can."

"Well, technically she can't." Pyrrha said with a wide smile. "It's her sword, The Bleeding Edge. It's a one of a kind loot drop for killing a Nevermore dungeon boss in the Emerald Forest."

"So it's enchanted?" Blake asked as she watched Jaune's fight with Morgiana

"Well, lore wise it's apparently a cursed blade that causes bleeding upon even the smallest of cuts and the effect even stacks."

"That sounds OP…" Weiss said, amazed that such a weapon exists in the game.

"Well, it seems that way because Crescent is really fast." Pyrrha explained, only for Weiss and Blake to give her confused looks. Pyrrha sighed and was about to explain in detail, but the girl named Penelope beat her to it and began explaining with eager excitement.

"You see, the bleeding effect only does five points of damage every second and lasts for only a minute." Penelope said as she watched Crescent in awe. "Plus, most warrior weapons like Crescent's are extremely heavy and require a really high amount of strength to wield and Warriors usually don't have the agility to have a high attack speed"

After the strange girl's eager and abrupt explanation, Weiss looked down at Crescent as she ran across the field towards the enemy base, her black and red hair blowing behind her as she picked up speed. "So...To counter the obvious weakness in her weapon, she focused on agility and strength rather than stamina and strength like normal warriors."

Penelope was about to speak again, but this time Pyrrha stood her ground and answered Weiss. "Yep, it was actually a closely guarded secret between me and her. She wanted to surprise everyone when the right moment came."

Pyrrha suddenly wore a smug smile as she glanced at Caesar, who was looking both impressed and shocked by Crescent's easy victory over Talaria. Weiss had to admit, seeing Pyrrha look so confident and smug was always a rare treat to see as she usually wasn't very competitive and Weiss shared Pyrrha's smug smile. "I guess the right time was another fight with Crimson Fall?"

"Yep. Now let's just hope she can handle that Neo girl…"

Ruby rushed inside the old gothic church, the rows of pews were old and covered in cobwebs. The red flag that belonged to the enemy team sat at the altar all alone, prompting Ruby to slow to snail's pace as she crept through the building. She knew Neo was inside, hiding, waiting for her chance to strike. The wooden floorboards creaked and croaked with each step Ruby took and it only fueled her ever increasing anxiety. The moment Ruby was just feet away from the crimson flag, Neo Jumped down in front of her from above, wielding a saber that immediately danced just inches away from Ruby as she quickly stepped back. Neo drove Ruby back, her blade never ending it's flurry as Neo's body practically danced around her blade. Ruby wasn't expecting this level of speed and precision, Neo had always been a mystery among Ruby and her friends as none of them had ever seen Neo fight before.

Neo's speed was as surprising as it was relentless, the narrow walkway between the church pews gave Ruby little movement as she continued stepping back. However, when Neo swung low at Ruby's feet, Ruby jumped and kicked Neo in the chest, sending the smaller girl flying back. Ruby didn't hesitate as Neo regained her footing, she charged past Neo at full speed and grabbed the flag with her off hand, then made a B-line for the church's front doors, bursting out of the entrance with an enraged Neo hot on her trail. As Ruby ran across the field, she noticed a lack of spells being thrown about.

"Damn it, Jaune...you had one job."

Looking behind her, Ruby saw that Neo was a lot closer than she expected, just a mear foot of space away from striking her. It was official, Ruby was actually kind of scared by the small, mute girl who was managing to keep up with her at full speed, a first time thing for Ruby to experience. As of yet, nothing had been able to keep up with her in speed. Eventually, Neo began taking swings at her, occasionally jumping from one random rock to the next, but Ruby managed to dodge them with only mere inches to spare each time. By the time Ruby and Neo were closing in on the river, Ruby spotted Morgiana with their Blue flag and a very excited Nora giving chase.

"Hey Boop! How about a game of chicken!" Ruby hollered with a grin.

Nora laughed ecstatically as she began picking up speed, her hammer sparkling with electricity as she readied it for a powerful swing. "Do you even have to ask!?"

Both of them were on opposite sides of the river, closing in fast as Boop still chased after Morgiana and Ruby ran from Neo. Once both sides were at the river, Ruby jumped towards Morgiana, swinging her heavy sword clean through the green mage's torso. Nora jumped completely over Ruby however, hidden from Neo by Ruby's flowing red cape. When Nora emerged from behind Ruby's cloak, Neo was caught off guard as Nora swung her mighty, electrified hammer down on her and smashing the smaller girl straight down into the river below.

Ruby and Nora landed effortlessly on either side of the river, their landings syncing perfectly with the sound triumphant music echoing throughout the map, signalling the end of the round. Nora hopped on over two her side of the River with Ruby and leaned on her hammer. The red flag disappeared from Ruby's hand and Ruby too leaned on her weapon.

"Holy crap, that was a lot easier than I expected it to be…" Ruby muttered. She could have swore that she didn't hit Talaria a single time the first time she fought him. She hated to admit it, but his insult back at the inn about her swinging the sword like a clumsy cow wasn't entirely far off...to be honest, she really should have made sure she met the required strength of the sword she was wielding at the time. Plus, she had horrible swordsmanship skills back then. She just swung around hoping to hit her target.

After a few seconds, Jaune spawned beside them while looking rather gloomy. "I hate dying in this game…being in that white void for so long is scary."

"Yeah, they really should add some sort of spectator cam or something." Nora deadpanned, it was a legitimate complaint among the game's player base and one that the developers have stated they will fix in a future update. "Hey Crescent, how did your fight with Talaria go?"

"Oh I kicked his sorry ass to the moon and back!" Ruby laughed, remembering the shock Talaria had when she delivered the killing blow. "I wish you guys saw his face."

"I bet he was terrified!" Nora laughed and wrapped her arm around Ruby's shoulder.

"Hey!" An angry voice joined in, belonging to none other than Talaria who was storming over to them and fuming with rage. "How the hell are you so fast! You're a damn warrior for fuck sake!"

"So? Just because I'm a warrior doesn't mean I can't put points in agility." Ruby deadpanned, smirking all the while. She was enjoying seeing the guy that had wiped the floor with her in the past suddenly unable to accept that he lost so easily.

"But...For fuck sake! Why the hell does a warrior need so much agility!?" Ruby backed away from Talara, she was actually starting to get a little nervous by his sudden anger as he glared at her.

"Hey, back off pal!" Nora stepped in front of Ruby, her hammer ready to swing.

"Talaria!" Morgiana was storming over now as well, looking rather annoyed at her partner. "What the hell do you think you're doing? We need to get back over to our base so we can start the next round."

"Fuck that! This stupid bitch is cheating!" Talaria pointed directly at Ruby, who simply rolled her eyes. Of course he accused her of cheating…

Ruby was about to turn around and walk away, not even wanting to bother with Talaria and his crap. However, the moment she did so, she was face to face with Caesar who stood over her. He was glaring at Talaria and Morgiana. "What in blazes is going on down here?"

"This stupid bi-"

"That's not what I meant, and you know it." Caesar's glare at the two younger Crimson Fall members was terrifying to say the least and Ruby couldn't have swore Talaria and Morgiana actually waver in fear. "Last I checked, you two aren't supposed to be online."

Morgiana managed to cut Talaria off before getting them into even more trouble. "Well, you see...um, we-"

"Neo?" Caesar suddenly said as Neo silently joined the group, Ruby noticed that Caesar looked surprised and alarmed by Neo's appearance. "What are you doing online? You should be in..."

Caesar suddenly cut himself off, looking at Ruby and her friends before taking Neo by the hand and leading her away and out of earshot. Ruby watched the two engage in sign language, wondering what they might be talking about. Ruby then looked up at the Spectator's Cliffside to See Weiss and her other friends watching from up top and looked just as confused as Ruby felt as they began making their way down the cliff by using a small path downward. Eventually, Caesar came back with Neo in tow and looking mentally exhausted.

"Alright, as much as I'd like to continue watching the match...Talaria, Morgiana, you two are done here." Talaria was about to complain, but Caesar didn't bother giving him the chance. "Get off before you two get into trouble. Or do you really want me to tell Miss Salem that you two went online despite being grounded?"

"Caesar!" Morgiana hissed quietly and pointed at Ruby and her friends. "Not in front of them."

"Fine, fine...whatever. Just get off before I change my mind. And that goes triple for you Neo…" Caesar didn't glare at Neo, instead he wore a frown when addressing the young girl. In contrast, Neo simply nodded with a happy smile before logging off right then and there. Talaria and Morgiana did the same, though they were rather reluctant compared to Neo.

"Hey! We still have two more rounds!" Ruby yelled at the Crimson Fall members, but it was too late, Talaria and Morgiana already logged off and Caesar hardly seemed to care.

"They weren't even supposed to be online, now go slay some slimes or something." Caesar scoffed as he opened an interface panel and began messaging someone.

"Ha! What, are you their parent or something?" Nora scoffed half jokingly.

"Something like that." Caesar sent whatever message he was writing and closed the messaging app. "Now if you excuse me, I have some more adult things to take care of, something you brats certainly wouldn't understand."

Ruby was going to refute that claim but Caesar didn't give her the time of day as he too logged off. Ruby growled and kicked the dirt out of spite, Caesar always got on her nerves, treating her and her friends like nothing more than annoying children.

"Crescent! That was amazing!" Weiss and the rest of the group ran up to Ruby, Nora and Jaune, along with a girl that Ruby wasn't familiar with. Something about her face though looked eerily familiar to Ruby, but she just couldn't quite place her finger on why.

"Jaune, you did wonderful!" Pyrrha ran up and hugged Jaune, earny a small giggle out of Nora and Weiss.

"Really? But I got my butt beat by a mage…"

"Hey, it's not your fault she kept knocking you away."

"Yeah! Plus, you held her off long enough to give Crescent the time to take the flag!"

A sudden cough interrupted the group's celebrations, prompting everyone to look at the girl named Penelope. "Sorry to interrupt, but I'm kind of on a tight schedule and I really need to speak to, erm, Crescent was it?"

"Um, do I Know you?" Ruby raised a brow as she still struggled to figure out why she looks so familiar.

"Oh!" Pyrrha suddenly chimed in, though she looked a little unsure of herself. "Um, this is Penelope, she claims to be a friend of yours."

"yes, I really need to talk to you about something." The strange girl looked among Ruby's friends for a moment before looking back at Ruby. "Preferably alone."

Everyone was silent for a moment, with Ruby being wary of this Penelope girl. She didn't know anyone name Penelope and it wasn't clear whether it was her real name or just her in-game name.

"Hang on, why do you need to be alone with her?" Weiss suddenly asked.

"Yeah, that's kind of suspicious." Gambol took a step forward, closer to Weiss. "We've only met you and Crescent has never mentioned you before."

"It's fine, everyone." Everyone suddenly looked at Ruby, surprised that she didn't see a problem with it. "Geez, I don't see the problem in talking to her."

Honestly, Ruby thought it was stupid that everyone is being so defensive towards this Penelope girl, what's the worst that could happen?. So, Without wasting another moment, Ruby led the girl away so they could talk privately, and if she was being totally honest, she was really curious about who the girl was and why she wanted to talk to her so badly.

Weiss sat on a rock and watched Crescent and Penelope walk away, right alongside everyone else. The whole thing was weird. This green haired girl just showed up out of nowhere, looking specifically for Crescent, and knew that Weiss and the group were Crescent's friends before even asking for their names. Weiss also found it odd that the girl seemed to show up as if she knew exactly where they were. Several theories were running through Weiss mind, all leading towards the girl possibly being a hacker, which was a terrifying thought to have. However, something else that was odd caught her eye. Pyrrha and Blake were a couple feet away from the group, just barely out of earshot and whispering to each other. Weiss was the closest to them and was really surprised that she was probably the only one who could just barely hear them.

"I don't get it, I thought you said she didn't have any friends in school?"

"Well, me and Yang aren't always with her at lunch and we don't have every class together. Maybe it's someone we never noticed before."

"I don't think so, she looked just as confused as the rest of us…"

Weiss perked up upon hearing Blake mention Yang. What did Yang have to do with anything? And are they talking about Ruby? Weiss stood from her rock and quietly walked up behind Blake and Pyrrha, trying to hear more of their conversation. It was really suspicious of them to be whispering like this and Weiss was already suspicious of Pyrrha's reason for inviting Blake to play with them.

"Well...It's obvious by now that she's Crescent. But I still don't get why she keeps her hobby a secret."

Weiss had enough, she got right up behind them just inches away. "What are you two talking about?"

Both Pyrrha and Blake practically jumped out of their skin when Weiss showed up behind them. "Umm…."

"Well...you see…"

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" Crescent's voice suddenly echoed across the map, drawing everyone's attention to her, where she was hugging Penelope and lifting her off the ground.

"Um…" Weiss wasn't sure what to say or do in response to seeing Crescent look so happy while hugging the mysterious girl, her brain was still trying to focus on Blake and Pyrrha's suspicious conversation. She shook her head and faced Pyrrha and Blake again. "Anyway! What are you two going on about?"

"Alright, who are you and what do you want?" Ruby crossed her arms as she sat on a log. There was no point in prolonging this as she just wanted to get out of the way.

The green haired girl seemed to fidget for a moment before finally speaking. "Well, you see...I'm looking for someone that I met two years ago and I believe that you're that person."

"Um, okay?" Well that certainly didn't answer anything.

"Alright, um, I probably could have explained that better…" the girl rolled her eyes and sighed. "oh screw it, are you Ruby Rose?"

Ruby's eyes shot open as she stood up from her log. "W-Wha-how do you know-"

"I'm Penny Polendina, we met at the hospital exactly two years ago." The girl blurted out, suddenly looking nervous as she awaited Ruby's response.

Ruby stood there silently as her brain processed what she just heard. Penny Polendina, THE Penny Polendina, was standing before her once again. And Ruby still couldn't keep herself from squealing like a fangirl as she suddenly jumped up and down. "Oh. My. God!"

In a split second, Ruby hugged Penny in a tight embrace and lifted her off her feet, with a few tears falling down her cheeks. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! I thought I'd never get to see you again and get to thank you for what you did!"

"Oh! Um, I'm glad you really liked my gift." Penny giggled before Ruby finally let her go and stepped back a few feet from Penny, who readjusted her witch's costume after being bunched up by Ruby's hug.

"Sorry...I just...you don't know how much your gift and this game mean to me…" Ruby fidgeted in place, unsure of how to present herself in front of the person that gave her a second chance to experience the ability to walk, even if it was digital.

"Oh I'm sure I can imagine. Penny stood with her hands on her hips, staring up and down Ruby's character model. "So, a warrior huh?"

"Yeah! I like being in the front of the action and their giant swords are so cool!" Ruby squealed and unsheathed her massive sword. "I was really lucky to get this rare sword, too!"

"Ooh! You managed to get Bleeding Edge! You are very lucky, indeed. It has a zero point zero one percent chance of dropping and only one of it exists in the entire server."

"I know! It's so cool!" Ruby stroked the side of her blade, petting it like a pet.

"Oh! I almost forgot, I really need to talk about a favor I need from you." Penny suddenly looked a bit serious, but her smile never wavered.

"A favor? What do you need?"

"Well, you see, as successful as the Full Real Virtual Reality system and Beacon's of Remnant have become, the amount of people who still can't actually experience them is pretty high. Sooo, I got a wonderful idea to allow people to see how great the tech and game is!"

"Okay?" Ruby raised a brow, unsure of where this was going.

"Polendina works is gonna work together with Spasm to launch the first ever Full Real Virtual Reality streaming! And I want you to be one of our first twenty streamers."

"W-What?" Ruby suddenly felt weak at the knees. She couldn't have heard that right, right? There's no way she could stream to countless amounts of people. "Penny, you can't stream with the virtual reality system, it's completely isolated on it's own network or whatever, right? I mean, I know I'm probably not using the right lingo or whatever here, but it's not possible to stream...isn't it?"

"That's why I'd be giving you a special version of the FRVR helmet! You see, Polendina Works has been working on a few upgrades and design ideas for a new helmet, and one of the features we'll be adding to it is the ability to stream!"

Ruby thought it over for a moment, that sounded amazing and all, but why choose her? "But why me? I'm not exactly amazing or anything."

"Oh! In order to help gain publicity, we thought it would be a good idea to have some of our streamers being people who have disabilities and who benefit from the FRVR in the same way you do."

Ruby furrowed her brows, glaring at Penny. "So you just want to use the fact that I can't use my legs to give your company good publicity?"

"N-No! I didn't mean it like that!" Penny suddenly clung to Ruby like a scared puppy, startling Ruby greatly. "I just thought it would, I don't know, be really cool to show that even people with severe disabilities like yours can enjoy the game…Please, I promise, I didn't mean to offend you or anything...I...I just want to make people happy like my father."

Ruby stared down at the pleading look Penny gave her and Ruby honestly couldn't bring herself to be mad at her. If there is anyone who could rival Ruby and her puppy dog eyes, Penny is certainly one of them. "Well…I don't know...I don't really like having a lot of attention directed towards me specifically because of my disability…"

"I know I called it a favor, but I don't mean to make it sound like I'm trying to force you...I just really wanted to see my friend again and maybe give you an opportunity to be a part of something fun."

"Wait, friend?" Ruby swore something was wrong with her hearing, she couldn't possibly have heard that right. There was no way someone as amazing as Penny could possibly consider her as her friend.

Penny tilted her head. "Yeah, we are friends, right?"

"Um, I guess. I just...I honestly thought you would have forgotten about me. I mean, you're Penny Polendina! You graduated college at the age of fifteen! I'm just some weak girl who can't even walk on their own two feet..."

"What?! Of course I haven't forgotten about you, I have a photographic memory. In fact, that's how I found you to begin with." Penny's wide and happy smile was something Ruby found infectious as she couldn't help but smile as well, though it was rather weak. "Also, you are certainly not weak, Ruby. You're the one that inspired me to come up with the idea of giving people with disabilities like yours the opportunity to spread their love for the game!"

"I-I am?"

"Yep, After I sent you the FRVR set, I was suddenly curious to see if there were anyone who used the FRVR like you, and I was surprised to find out that there are quite a few who do, though it pains me to say that the price makes it difficult for them to actually acquire it...it's a shame medical bills are so high."

As Penny frowned at the sudden depressing topic, Ruby was busy wrapping her head around the fact that she was the person who inspired Penny. She honestly hadn't thought of there being other people like her who played the same game as her, people who struggle like her and manage to enjoy the game regardless. Maybe Gambol was one of them? Or even Jaune? Ruby shook her head and refocused on Penny, who was quietly ranting to herself about how expensive things are in the health care industry

"Well, anyway...as cool as this all sounds...I still don't know if I can..."

Ruby managed to get Penny's attention instantly, and Penny tilted her head in confusion. "Is it a problem with your parents or something?"

'Huh, what a lucky guess…' Ruby stared at the ground as she tried to figure out how to explain herself. "Um, kind of? I never really told anyone about the FRVR set you gave me."

Penny raised a brow, still tilting her head. "I don't understand?"

"Well, you see...no one knows I play this game...My family just think I lock myself in my room and refuse to come out…" Now that she said it out loud, it sounded really pathetic and sad. Though, that wasn't really saying much...she's already pathetic and weak.

"Why keep it a secret?"

"Because I'm afraid that my dad will take it away if he finds out that the reason I haven't been doing my homework and avoiding family is because of the game…" Ruby struggled to not let her fear show as a tear threatened to break free. She couldn't possibly live with herself if she couldn't go online again and run around with her friends, she doesn't care if people think she's addicted or something, Beacon's of Remnant Online is one of the few things that still give her joy.

"If he takes it away...I don't know what I'd do with my life, it's the only thing that makes me happy..."

A brief silence fell between them as Ruby wondered what to do. The offer Penny was giving her sounded interesting, but she couldn't possibly play the game with countless people watching her. Then there was the issue with her family and her secret. She is definitely not ready to let that be known. As much as Ruby would love to be able to do something with Penny, there was just no way she could get around to it. Not to mention she was already busy with trying to get caught up with school work.

"Hmm...Oh! I know!" Penny got right into Ruby's personal space with a huge smile, her eyes gleaming with excitement. "why not just tell him that you want to be part of my streaming plan and then you can get the new helmet and I'd send a new suit for you too, that way it looks like you've never gotten one before! It's foolproof!"

"How would that work exactly? I thought you were inviting me personally?"

"Oh no, I am positive that would bring some legal issues. You'll have to apply first on our website even if you do tell me you'd wanted to right this very second. And besides, We still need to announce the event later this week."

"I see…" Ruby thought about Penny's plan for a moment, it could work and she wouldn't have to lie to her family anymore. It was too good to be true and that was the problem. It was too perfect…and if there was anything her uncle had taught her, it's that if it's too good to be true, it most likely isn't good. "That could work…is it okay if I think about it first?"

"Of course! It'll take a week or two for Polendina Works to go through all the applicants, but I'll try my best to hold a spot for you if I can. Just don't take too long." Penny chirped, giving Ruby a cheery smile. Ruby still couldn't believe she was talking to Penny. She honestly thought Penny forgot about her, it's not like she was anyone important, at least not from her perspective. Penny's in a completely different world than her after all.

"Oh crap, alright alright Ciel, I'll log off in just a sec!" Penny seemed to suddenly talk to herself, and Ruby was certainly a bit creeped out by it as she took a step back. "Sorry, that was my intern and secretary, Ciel. Apparently I forgot about an important meeting and so I'm afraid I'll have to go before Ciel complains even more."

"W-Wait!" Ruby grabbed onto Penny's arm out of instinct, she had so many questions for Penny.

"I'm sorry, I really have to go."

"Just answer one question, please?" Ruby did her best to make the perfect puppy dog eyes, and like clockwork, Penny eventually broke under her sad gaze.

Penny sighed in defeat and Ruby let go of her arm. "Alright, but make it quick."

Ruby quickly wore a giddy smile. Noone can ever resist the power of puppy dog eyes. "Okay, I promise this will be quick. So, um, why do you do all these things for me? Like sending me the FRVR kit a couple years back. Why go through the trouble of finding me again?"

Penny smiled at her, a warm and friendly smile. "Because we're friends, and friend's always do things for each other. Or at least, that's what my father always taught me. When you told me about your accident all those years ago, I wondered if there was anything I could do that would make you feel better."

Ruby was a bit shocked. Back then, she didn't know who Penny was. Ruby just thought Penny was just some random girl that was nice to her and visited her from time to time during her stay at the hospital. Ruby honestly didn't think too much about Penny back then. Ruby would be the first to admit that she wasn't exactly the friendliest person to be around during those first couple of months of her new life, and she'd admit that she didn't really think of Penny as a friend back then, just some friendly stranger. However, hearing how genuine Penny seemed to be, how eager she is to help not only Ruby but apparently other people like her. It wasn't something Ruby could deny.

Penny is certainly a good person.

Ruby smiled and gave Penny a hug, squeezing her tight. "Thank you."

Penny was startled by the sudden hug but quickly returned it in full. "You're very welcome, Ruby. Now, I gotta go. I haven't had dinner yet and I need to get something to eat before my meeting or else my father is gonna worry about my health even more than he already has."

Ruby's eyes shot open at the mention of dinner. "Crap! I forgot about dinner!"

Penny laughed as she opened up her menu panel. "Well, Have a good dinner Ruby! I hope to see you again later!"

"Bye!" Ruby barely even looked at Penny as she rushed to open her own menu panel. She could also hear Weiss and her friends running towards her but Ruby ignored whatever they were saying. She needed to get back to dinner, Qrow is home and she didn't want to miss having dinner with him. Plus, he's always the one who usually cooks whenever he's home and Qrow's cooking was to die for.

"Ru-Crescent!" Weiss yelled, rushing towards Ruby. "We need to ta-"

Ruby didn't listen, she was already logging out and before Weiss could even finish her sentence, Ruby had logged off the game.

Weiss stomped her foot into the ground one last time as she watched Ruby disappear. "Great...just great."

"Weiss…." Pyrrha whispered, just low enough for Weiss to hear.

"Don't you 'Weiss' me." Weiss spat out as she spun around, facing Pyrrha with a glare. "You lied to me, you didn't think to tell me that Crescent might have been Ruby? Do you have any idea how much easier it might have been to interact with her if I knew she was Crescent?!"

"Weiss, give her a break. It was only a theory." Blake stepped in, which only made Weiss' anger rise. Why did Blake of all people get to have this information and not her? Why did Pyrrha tell Blake and not her?

"And you! What do you have to do with all this? Huh? Is it just so you can win some stupid brownie points with your girlfriend?"

Blake got right into Weiss' face, glaring down at her. "Of course not! Yes, I want to help my girlfriend, but I also want to get to know Ruby more and figure out why she's so passive aggressive towards everyone,including her own family."

"Will everyone just shut up and explain to me what the fuck is going on!?" Boop butted in between Weiss and Blake, threatening both of them with her hammer.

Jaune and Ren stepped up behind Boop, with Ren trying to calm Boop down. Jaune stood between everyone, trying his best to make sure no one went at each other's throats. "Alright, let's just all settle down and just talk. No need to argue."

"What's there to talk about?! Apparently, Pyrrha and Blake have apparently known Crescent is Ruby and didn't think to tell me and oh my god I just said everyone's names out loud..." Weiss buried her face into her hands as she realized she also just revealed her own name as well, she couldn't believe she just outed herself. She honestly expected Blake to reveal her identity.

"Hold up, how the hell do you guys know about Ruby?" Boop had a menacing glare aimed at Pyrrha, Blake, and Weiss, causing everyone but Ren to look at her with wide eyes, with Jaune simply looking as confused as ever.

"Who the hell is Ruby, Weiss, and Blake?" Jaune asked, looking at anyone who could answer the question.

Weiss raised her hand, while her face was still buried with the other. Might as well just get it out of the way now. "I'm Weiss…"

"And I'm Blake." Blake raised her hand as well before gesturing towards Weiss and Pyrrha. "I go to the same school as Weiss and Pyrrha."

"And I ask you again," Boop stomped over towards Weiss and Blake, glaring at them. "How the hell do you know Ruby? She wanted that to be kept a secret!"

Weiss and Blake shared a nervous look and Weiss found herself actually scared of Boop for the first time. "Umm...Well, you see"

Pyrrha suddenly stood in front of Boop, shielding Weiss and Blake. "Weiss is Ruby's tutor a friend, or atleast we think she is."

Boop raised a brow at Weiss, her glare only slightly wavering. "You Think you're friends?"

Weiss sighed. "Ruby hasn't exactly made it easy to befriend her...plus, I've only known her a little over a week. Or, well, at least I thought I did. Turns out I've known her for a couple of months now..."

Boop shifted her glare to Blake. "And you?"

Pyrrha stepped in front of Blake, just to make sure Boop didn't calm down. Everyone who was in the guild before Weiss and Blake knew that Boop can be quite protective of her friends, and judging by how she was acting now in regards to the situation, Pyrrha could tell that Ruby must be a really close friend. Hell, Pyrrha was still surprised that Boop actually knows Ruby.

"Blake is girlfriends with Ruby's sister, Yang. I met Ruby at school and thought that she seemed oddly familiar and realized that she sounds kind of like Crescent, but I could tell very well since she's always so quiet. And after a run in with her sister and Blake, I told her about the similarities and so we hatched a plan to figure out Ruby is indeed Crescent."

Boop took a deep breath, closing her eyes before finally opening them to look at Weiss and Blake. "Sorry for getting so mad. I can get a little protective of Ruby sometimes, she really, really doesn't want you guys to know about her secret." Boop chuckled as she suddenly had a weak smile. "Well, I guess you guys kind of already knew for a while though…"

"I don't understand, you knew all along?" Weiss, like Pyrrha, is surprised by the fact that Boop knows Ruby. In fact, it even further angered her as it seemed like she was the only one who wasn't informed of this vital information.

"Yep!"

"But aren't you like, nineteen or something? How do you know Ruby?"

"Oh, we met at the hospital! Long story involving several lightning strikes, meeting a depressed little girl, and a little love story where that little girl managed to encourage me to ask Ren out. You know, the usual "making friends" bs."

"Umm…" Weiss, honest to god, had no idea how to respond to that. She stared at the pinked hair girl for a good couple of seconds before turning to Ren, who simply shrugged with a soft smile aimed at Boop.

"Okay, can someone explain to me what is going on?! Because I feel so lost!" Jaune slumped onto a log with his hands thrown into the air. Weiss couldn't blame him, he wasn't exactly connected to Ruby in any way in the outside world. In a way, Weiss kind of felt sorry for him. Kind of.

Pyrrha walked over to Jaune and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Sorry, it seems like kind of a long story, and honestly, a huge mess too."

"Eh, it's Saturday night, I still got time for a story or two."

Ruby's body slowly woke up as she regained feeling from the waist up. She stretched out her back and heard a few pops. Yep, sitting in her wheelchair to play Beacons of Remnant is not exactly good for her body. Ruby didn't lament on that though as she rushed to change back into her t-shirt and sweatpants, before finally leaving her bedroom. The moment she opened her door, Ruby could smell her uncle's delicious cooking. She quickly wheeled herself into the dining room, where Her sister, father, and uncle were already seated and ready to begin eating.

"See? I told you she'd come out on her own, you just got to be patient." Qrow said as he gave Tai a confident smile.

"I'm so sorry I'm late." Ruby rolled herself up to her usual spot across from her sister and right next to Qrow. "I lost track of time doing my homework, which was a little easier than i thought it would be and I really love this homemade hamburger and it's so good!"

Ruby quickly stuffed her mouth with food in order to shut herself up. She was fully aware that she rambles when she's nervous or excited and she didn't want to risk saying the wrong thing in the middle of her ramblings. Qrow's home made cooking is just as good as she remembers, the meat practically melting in her mouth.

"Thanks, glad to hear that I still got it." Qrow cheered before taking another bite of his own hamburger.

"So Ruby, how's your homework coming along? You're not pushing yourself too much I hope." Tai asked as he wiped some sauce off his lips.

"Oh, I'm doing good. I should be caught up sometime next month if I keep up my pace." That is if she managed to fix the lack of sleep in her schedule. If not, she just might work herself to death.

"What about the Ice Queen?" yang added, making Ruby roll her eyes at the sound of Weiss' nickname. "Is the royal brat giving you any trouble?"

Ruby glared at her sister. "Weiss is fine, she's actually been a lot of help."

"Who's Weiss? And why is she giving Ruby trouble?" Qrow asked.

"She isn't giving me trouble."

"She's a stuck up rich girl."

Qrow looked at both Ruby and Yang, then at Tai who simple shrugged. "Hey, don't look at me. I just know she's tutoring Ruby."

"Why do you need a tutor?" Qrow looked at Ruby in surprise. "Last I checked, you're a pretty smart cookie."

Ruby sighed, setting her hamburger down. "I am, I'm just kind of behind on some work…"

"Yeah, and by some, she means all of it." Ruby glared at Yang, causing her to throw up her arms. "What? I'm just saying."

"Still…" Ruby stuffed her mouth with her hamburger, hoping the conversation about her school work would just end.

"Anyways…" Tai started before his daughters could argue any further. "Qrow has some good news to share."

Qrow swallowed and smiled widely. "Oh, right! Almost forgot, I've recently been discharged from the army."

Ruby perked up, her cheeks bulging with food. She couldn't believe her ears "F'relly?!"

Qrow chuckled and tapped his cheek to signal Ruby to swallow before speaking, which prompted Ruby to do just that and wipe her mouth. Qrow took a quick sip of his water before continuing. "Yep, and I get to spend even more time with you kiddos."

"What did they discharge you for?" Yang leaned forward in her seat, excited for whatever outrageous story her uncle might tell. "Did you punch a general? Oh! Did you wreck a billion dollar aircraft!?"

"Ha! I wish. But no, nothing like that, it's just...oh how did Ironwood call it? For the convenience of the government." He chuckled, remembering the meeting he had with his commanding officer.

"So they finally got fed up with your crap, huh? I was wondering when they'd give up trying to deal with you." Tai took a quick drink of his water, smirking behind the glass.

"Eh, something like that. Anyways, I'll be staying in town with a friend of mine who got out with me."

"Aw, you won't be staying with us?" Ruby did her best puppy dog eyes, she was really looking forward to having Qrow around, it would certainly make lying to her father and sister easier and she always missed Qrow whenever he got deployed.

"Don't worry, Kiddo." Qrow ruffled up Ruby's hair, completely immune to Ruby's puppy eyes. "I'll make sure to visit as much as possible."

Ruby smiled a big toothy smile, prompting a sudden giggle from Yang. Ruby looked over at her, raising a brow. "What's so funny?"

Yang smiled softly at her. "I just haven't seen you smile like that in a long time, especially during dinner."

Ruby shrunk in on herself, the guilt of avoiding her family suddenly coming down on her like a boulder. "Oh, right...sorry, I guess I have been kind of depressing to be around lately."

"Nonsense, Ruby." Tai chimed in with a smile of his own, But to Ruby that smile only made her feel more guilty. "I know the last couple of years has been...difficult, to say the least. But if anyone has to apologize for anything, it should be me and Yang."

"What? Why? I-"

"We've been hovering over you, trying to do whatever it takes to make sure you're safe to the point where it seems like you lock yourself in your room in order to avoid us." Tai began to frown, he took a deep breath and smiled again. "What I'm trying to say is that me and Yang will try not to be, as Qrow put it, helicopter moms. Instead, we'll try our best to let you spread your wings."

Ruby stared at her father and sister for a moment, unsure of what to say. She wasn't really expecting this kind of conversation. Ruby certainly did feel annoyed whenever they treated her like the most fragile thing in the world and she never really bothered hiding it too well, but she certainly understood why they did what they did. Ruby wasn't stupid, she know's she's weak now, she know's there are things that she just wouldn't be able to do anymore.

"We'd really like it if you came out of your room a little more often." Yang suddenly chimed in. "I really miss playing games with my baby sister."

Ruby perked up at that, looking right into her sister's warm lilac eyes. The sudden memory of playing games in front of the TV with her sister came to mind, causing a small and guilty smile to tug at her lips. "I...um, I guess I could try to hang out in the living room more often...you know, whenever I'm not studying that is."

"Great! How about we play a bit of Grim Souls after dinner?"

"I...I'd like that."